1. Technical Field
Various embodiments relate to a semiconductor integrated circuit, and more particularly, to a semiconductor apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
A semiconductor apparatus receives a voltage from an exterior, and generates and uses a voltage having a voltage level required inside the semiconductor apparatus.
A voltage generated inside is called an internal voltage. An internal voltage is generally generated by down-converting a voltage applied from an exterior, but an interval voltage may be generated as a voltage having a higher voltage level or as a voltage having a lower voltage level than a voltage applied from an exterior.
In this case, a voltage having a higher voltage level or a voltage having a lower voltage level than a voltage applied from an exterior is generated by a pumping operation, and is thus called a pumping voltage.
The generation of a pumping voltage is accommodated with power consumption to increase or decrease, through a pumping operation, the voltage level of a voltage applied from an exterior, wherein since the efficiency of the pumping operation is lower than the efficiency of down-converting to generate another internal voltage, the power consumption for the generation of the pumping voltage is greater than that for the generation of the other internal voltage.
Power consumed to generate a pumping voltage acts as an obstacle to implementation of a low-power semiconductor apparatus.